Turkey Weekend

Pendore Vineyards, near Izmir, September 29-30, 2012

A grape harvest weekend for Ordre Mondial members of the Bailliage of Istanbul

Kavaklidere, the largest wine producer in Turkey, hosted some 20 Istanbul Ordre Mondial members for a grape harvest weekend at their Pendore Vineyards, near the city of Izmir.

The weekend’s programme began as soon as we had checked in at the Lydia Hotel. We went to the Pendore winery where we were greeted by Kavaklidere’s Director of Education and Training Activities, Professionel du Vin Levon Bağiş, together with the company’s Istanbul Customer Relations Coordinator, Yasemin Taşlica.

We then drove through the vineyards to a hilltop plateau named after one of the grapes (Öküzgözü Terrace) for a sunset cocktail while enjoying the spectacular view of the largest single vineyard in Turkey. Dinner in a vineyard cabin was a variety of hot and cold regional dishes were served. Concurrent with the courses was a tasting of a selection of the company’s prime wines.

At 6am the following morning, we joined the harvest workers in the vineyard. We were given brief instructions then participated in the grape-picking for a couple of hours. A well-deserved full and rich Turkish breakfast pause was taken at the end of which a presentation was made to everyone in the group. It took the form of a Perspex plate on which the person’s name, a grape type, a plot number, a row number and a vine plant number, were printed. The challenge was then to find the respective vine and hang the Perspex plate on it so that every member had their own vine identified in the vineyard.

The day continued with a visit to the winery and guided tour through the wine-making process. This enabled us to taste wines at different stage of maturity: directly from the maturing tanks (three weeks’ old), and oak casks (from six – eighteen months’ old).

Taking advantage of the proximity of Sardes, we paid a cultural visit to this antique city. It was followed by a lunch at a famous local meatball restaurant. It was them time to return to the airport and catch our flight home.

It was indeed a memorable event. Everyone was overwhelmed by the hospitality of our hosts. Our warm appreciation was shown to the owners of Kavaklidere Wines, Professionels du Vin Ali and Murat Başman, for their generosity in sponsoring the entire event, including the flight tickets, the hotel accommodation and all the meals.Mohamed Hammam, Bailli Délégué________________________________________________________________________________________________________